According to a security assessment document drawn up by Indian police in the Himalayan region of Ladakh, further clashes could occur between Indian and Chinese troops along their disputed border as Beijing ramps up military infrastructure in the region, Reuters reports, according to Agerpres.

At least 24 soldiers were killed in clashes between the two Asian giants in Ladakh, west of the Himalayas, in 2020, but tensions have eased after military and diplomatic talks. Further clashes broke out between the two sides in the eastern Himalayas in December, but no deaths were reported.

The assessment is part of a new confidential Ladakh police research document presented at a conference of senior police officials held between January 20 and 22 and reviewed by Reuters.

According to the report, the assessment was based on information gathered by local police in border areas and the „pattern” of India-China military tensions over the years.

The Indian military did not respond to a request for comment, but the assessment is significant as it was presented at a conference attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

India’s defense and foreign ministries did not respond to requests for comment. The Chinese Foreign Ministry also did not respond to a request for comment.

„Given China’s internal constraints (…) and economic interests in the region, the PLA would continue to build up its military infrastructure and confrontations would also be frequent, which may or may not follow a pattern,” the paper says, referring to the People’s Liberation Army of China.

„If we analyze the pattern of confrontations and tensions, the intensity has increased since 2013-2014 with an interval every 2-3 years”, according to the document.

„With the massive infrastructure built by the PLA on the Chinese side, both armies are testing each other’s reaction, the power of artillery and infantry mobilization time.”

The report also says that India is slowly losing ground to China in Ladakh, while the border has been pushed into Indian territory by creating buffer zones.

India and China share a 3,500 km border that has been disputed since the 1950s. The two sides went to war over this in 1962.

Agerpres